Little Malfoy
by littlemalfoy
Summary: Draco is a git as a form of letting out pain caused by years of abuse. When he has to face the pain and responsibilty of raising his long lost 7 year old sister, will the spunky girl heal his heart enough for him to allow himself to love Hermione Granger?
1. Sister

"Disaster is a natural part of my evolution." 

Draco cried in pain as the whip, enchanted so that it burst into flames when it came in contact with skin, came down on his back again.

"Father…please…stop! Stop! " His voice was hoarse from screaming to much, and his body was covered in blood, burns and deep cuts. He was crouched on the floor, curled up in a ball, his shirt ripped off of his body and thrown to the corner of the room.

"Son, the-only-way-to-toughen-you-up-is-this!" said Lucuis Malfoy, accompanying each word with another hit from the flaming whip. Draco ground his teeth together in pain and tried not to scream.

"I…I have to leave now…to go to…school."

Lucuis's eyes narrowed.

"Very well. Get your bags and apparate there. "

"But I haven't passed my test yet…"

"Do you think I care, boy? Heal yourself up and go."

Draco nodded, though he had no intentions of healing himself. Today was the day that he would Rebel. Today, he would seek protection from the only place he could truthfully call home: Hogwarts.

He limped into his room and pulled his clothes and worst robes (which where still quite expensive) over his damaged back, trying not to cringe. He put a shrinking spell on his suitcases and popped them in his pocket, then apparated to platform 9/3 quarters. No body guessed what had happened to him as he took a seat in his compartment, though some did comment on how messy his normally perfect hair looked. Granger came and reminded him about his duties as head boy, and he shrugged.

"I need to talk to you, Granger." He said quietly. She looked surprised at the hoarse quality of his voice, but nodded and led him to an empty compartment.

Once they sat down, he cleared his throat uncomfortably before saying:

"Look, I don't like you, you don't like me but unfortunately I need your help."

Hermione raised an eyebrow.

"What would you need my help for, Malfoy?"

He glanced around wearily before rolling up his sleeves to show her the deep cuts and burns on his arm.

"I need to know…how you tell someone about stuff like this. You're annoying, but smart, and I thought…I thought you would know how."

"Malfoy…how did you get those?" she asked, unable to take her eyes from the grotesque cuts.

He hesitated and took a long, shaking breath.

"My parents." He said quietly.

Her eyes widened. _The great Draco Malfoy, whom everyone thought was a spoiled, pompous brat, was abused by his own mum and dad._

"How long has this been happening?" she managed to say

"As long as I can remember." He admitted

"You git! Why didn't you tell someone before?" she yelled

He cringed.

"You really are a mother hen, aren't you?" he asked "Look, Granger, I just…I need to know _who _can fix my parents."

"Fix them?" _God, could this boy be any more thick? _

"Yes, you know, someone who won't send them to jail but will help them to see that…that It's not right to umm…you know."

"No, Malfoy, you need someone who _will _send them to jail."

"But …"

"No buts. You _will _tell Dumbledore as soon as we get to Hogwarts. And I'm coming with you to make sure you do."

Draco took another deep breath. He knew she was right, knew that his father was an evil, heartless git , knew he should be happy to turn him in…but he wasn't, he loved his father, always would, and there was nothing he could do about it. His mother he hardly knew, she came home once in a while, normally drunk, beat him to a pulp and then left again. His father would satisfy his needs with mistresses while she was gone. Despite this, he loved his parents, but he wanted the pain to end. And this was the only way.

He nodded.

As soon as the sorting feast was over, Hermione dragged Malfoy to Professor Dumbledore's office. The old wizard looked surprised, but gestured for them to sit down.

"Malfoy has something to tell you." Informed Hermione

Draco glared at her, then turned back to face the Headmaster.

"Professor, I…" his voice caught in his throat and he turned to Hermione again.

"I can't do this." He whispered.

She gave him a look that said 'you can and you will.' When he remained silent, she grabbed the sleeves of his robes and sweater and pulled it up, revealing the cuts and burns on his arms.

"This is what he needs to tell you about. How he got them-who gave them to him."

Professor Dumbledore made eye contact with the platinum blonde for a split second before Draco looked away.

"And who might that be?" he asked curiously.

Draco gulped and fought back tears.

"My parents." He whispered, his cheeks burning bright red in shame. Regret filled him immediately. What had he done? He rated out his own _parents_, for goodness sake! They thought that torture would make him a better person, and he had betrayed them.

"Do not be upset, Draco. Your parents where arrested shortly after you boarded the train and sent to live there remaining lives in Azkaban."

"What? Why-how?"

Dumbledore took a deep breath.

"7 years ago your mother got pregnant with her second child." He paused for dramatic effect, then watched as the eyes of both teens widened. "After your father found out, they both agreed that another child would be a waste of resources and time. Your mother left for 9 months, and when the baby girl was born, she gave her to lord Voldemort as a sacrifice. He didn't care about the baby much because it was a girl, so he put her in a garbage can on a muggle street corner to die. The baby was found, however, by a muggle by the name of Breeze White, who named her Prudence. Breeze knew of the magical world, and even knew where the baby originated, though we have no clue how, and decided to allow the girl to keep 'Malfoy' as a last name. She wrote all of this in a diary and showed the girl photos of her brother and real parents. Yesterday at 2 AM, she came to my office in a near-death condition with Prudence by her side. We offered to heal her but found no magic of ours could have any effect on her. She told us her story, gave us her diary and died, leaving us with a 7 year old child. We did a thorough investigation and found out not only about your torture, but the fact that your parents where long time death eaters. Draco, you are the only living relative that Prudence has at this time. I am trusting _you_, with the help of Serveus, to raise this child. Do you accept this responsibility?"

Draco, too shocked to speak, only nodded. Hermione looked frozen to her chair.

"Very well then. Now, before you meet your sister, let's make you presentable." Dumbledore said, and with a wave of his wand, all of Draco's cuts where healed, and the blood that had finally managed to soak through to his robes disappeared.

"Prudence, you may come out now."

Seconds later, the door in the corner of Dumbledore's office opened, and a girl with curly ringlets of hair the same platinum blonde color of Draco's hair walked out. There was no doubting she was a Malfoy. Her eyes where the same deep gray color, she walked with an air of importance and she wore the same half-smile half-smirk that Draco wore most his life. She wore light purple pajamas with the words 'Girls Rule!' written in pink all over them. She took one look at Draco, squealed and jumped into his arms.

"Brother!"

She hugged him, and to his surprise, he found himself hugging back. One sentence just kept replaying in his mind. _I have a sister!_


	2. Tricky Little Girls

Dumbledore cleared his throat after a few moments, and Prudence let go of Draco and instead sat on his lap.

"Now, since both you and Mrs. Granger are head boy and girl, let us take a moment to talk about your living arrangements. You will have separate rooms and bathrooms, a shared common room, and your room, Draco, will be attached to Prudence's room and bathroom. The password for the head's common room is "_Penitus - Domus Prosapia_". Draco, Prudence will accompany you in all of your classes as a guest student." Dumbledore paused and glanced at his watch. "You had better hurry now, Potions is in…5 minutes."

Draco nodded and got up, Prudence glued to his back. Hermione eyed Dumbledore suspiciously, receiving nothing but a warm smile in return. Sighing, she caught up with Draco in the hallways.

"Draco…you do know what the password for our common room means, right?"

"No, I thought it was _your _job to be the know it all mudblood." He said nastily. He gasped in shock as he was slapped-not by Hermione, but by his sister.

"Draco, you be nice to the pretty lady!" she scolded. He looked as if he was about to argue, then sighed.

"Fine." He mumbled. "What does the password mean?"

"It means 'Inter-house family' in Latin," she said with an amused grin.

Draco spun around.

"Why the hell would he choose that password?" he asked

She shrugged.

"Come on, we had better get to class. _Voco libri,_" she said firmly, waving her wand, and their books came floating towards them. Still grinning, she grabbed her books out of the air and walked away. If Prudence hadn't been there, she would have slapped Draco for calling her a mudblood, but the little girl did it for her. _I guess not _all _Malfoys are spoiled prats, s_he thought as she opened the door to the potions classroom. Snape stopped in Mid-sentence and spun around to face her.

"Your _late_," he drawled, glaring at her.

"Dumbledore called a meeting to talk to the heads," she explained in a bittersweet voice, fighting the urge to roll her eyes.

Snape looked as though he was tempted to take away points, but instead he snarled and mumbled under his breath. Hermione took a seat near Ginny Weasley, Ron's little sister, and exchanged amused smiles. Draco walked in seconds later, holding hands with Prudence.

"Who is _that_?" Snape snapped, obviously not in a pleasant mood.

"My sister, Prue" replied Draco bluntly. "She will be a guest student for the remainder of the year on Dumbledore's orders."

Snape's eyes widened, and his ears flared bright red in anger.

"Don't lie to me! Do you think I'm stupid, boy? You don't _have _a sister! So tell me who that stupid blonde _thing _is right this minute! How dare you make a mockery of me!" he yelled

Prudence looked ready to kill.

"Are you _dense_? Of course he has a sister, you grumpy old man! Maybe if you had a sister you would be more_ liked _instead of the most despised teacher at Hogwarts! And how _dare _you call me a thing when you're standing here looking like the devil himself with an enormous wrinkle right between your eyes! _Slytherin_? Oh, please! You are a disgrace to Slytherin! I still don't understand how the head of such a great house could be a great sissy who picks on little girls!"

Prudence broke down in a sob at the last sentence, an all of the girls in the class glared daggers at Snape for hurting the feelings of such a cute little girl. Draco scooped her into his arms and cuddled her until the tears subsided, whispering words of comfort and reassurance. Even Snape looked regretful at his harsh words. His class had been misbehaving, Granger had gotten on his nerves and then Draco walked in with a strange child who claimed to be his sister. He hadn't meant to take his frustration out on the child, and now he wished he hadn't. He sighed uncomfortably, trying to find a way to apologize to the young girl.

"Erm…well…I didn't mean to…" he began, but the look on Prue's face made him stop talking abrubtly.

Prudence was looking at him with a raised eyebrow, her tears suddenly gone. In fact, she looked amused. When Draco noticed this and looked down at her, she pouted and tried to appear as sad as possible. Being new at caring for children, he bought the look without suspicion. Snape, however, could read right through her. _The little girl is more like Draco than I thought. She wants a reputation, so why not make a fool of old Serveus? _

As soon as Draco looked away, she crossed her eyes and stuck her tongue out at Snape, which caused the class to burst into laughter.


	3. Uncle,Uncle

A/N: Anyone who is curious about how Prue really looks can see a photo of what I based her description off of on my profile page. (it's my avatar)

Draco honestly didn't have a clue about why the class was laughing. Snape had insulted his sister, made her cry, and left her distraught . The weirdest thing about the entire situation was that Snape looked slightly amused as well. How dare he be amused after hurting his sister's feelings! Shaking his head, he took on of the last available seats behind Ginny Weasley, who turned to him, still giggling as Prue sat down in the seat beside him.

"You are _so _clueless." Her face was slightly flushed from laughing, and she glanced briefly over at prue.

Draco just looked puzzled, which made her laugh even harder.

Looking at the girl, Snape realized that she did resemble Draco. She had the same deep gray eyes and she had the traditional 'Malfoy' colored hair. When she caught him looking at her she smirked and stuck the tiniest bud of her tongue out at him from the corner of her mouth, careful not to let her brother see her. Snape tried to appear stern but failed, much to the little girl's delight. Sighing, he continued with class as usual, though students noticed he didn't deduct points from any of the houses or yell as often that day.

Draco stayed behind after class to tell Snape exactly what Dumbledore had said. He had expected Serveus to know about his new responsibilities, so he didn't really have a clue about how to tell his Professor about the situation.

"Umm…Professor Snape?"

The wizard looked up from his papers with a raised eyebrow.

"Yes, what is it?" he asked

Draco opened his mouth to speak, but Prue had taken this as the perfect moment to let go of his hand and sit down on the small space left on Snape's chair.

"I didn't really mean it what I said about the wrinkle and you being a sissy," she said, patting him on the head "but I was _on a roll_ and I had to get one or two more sentences in before the big finish…_Uncle Sev_." She smiled sweetly and planted a kiss on his cheek before hopping off his chair and sitting instead on one of the students' desk, leaving an utterly confused Potions Teacher behind.

Draco's jaw dropped and he stared at her in shock.

"But I thought you where upset…"

"Was there something you wanted to tell me?" interrupted Snape, causing Draco to turn his attention back to the slightly dazed potions teacher. Snape had three fingers lightly touching the stop that Prue had kissed, as if not sure if the girl had really done what he thought she had done.

"Well…I'm sure you've heard about what happened to my parents-" Draco began, and Snape nodded "Then…um… I have to take care of Prue, but since I'm a minor I need an adult to help and well…Dumbledore thought it fit for you to help me."

Snape looked up sharply.

"_What_ was that?" he asked.

"I said-"

"I know what you said! But why would the senile man think that _I _would know what to do with a child?"

"Honestly, I was wondering the same thing." Agreed Prudence. "But hey, if your not up for the challenge I'm sure he could get a more _qualified _person to do the job."

"I'm plenty _qualified_." Protested Snape, standing.

"Then why won't you do it?" asked Prue calmly, apparently very absorbed in gazing at her nails.

"I never said I wouldn't do it!" he countered.

"So you will?" she asked, still completely calm

"I never said that, either!" he said

"So you won't?" she asked, glancing up at him

He brought his hand to his forehead in confusion.

"What? I just said-"

"That you will?" she tilted her head to the side slightly, looking at him

The side of Snape's lip twitched in frustration.

"Fine. I'll do it." He half-growled.

"Alright. See you later." Prue jumped up and grabbed Draco's hand, leading the confused teen out of the classroom before Snape could change his mind.

Snape stood there for a few seconds, trying to figure out how he was tricked into taking care of a 7-year old girl.


	4. Snape Snogging

Prue had behaved like a sweet, completely innocent little girl throughout the rest of Draco's classes, earning her a chocolate frog from McGonagall and a box of every-flavored beans from Professor Sprout. After class, Draco made his way to the 6th floor and walked up to the head's portrait, which happened to be a very snotty looking man with a Hitler-style mustache.

"_Penitus - Domus Prosapia" _recited Draco, and the portrait swung open to reveal a beautifully decorated common room mixed with colors of Slytherin _and_ Gryffindor. Prudence gasped and jumped from his arms.

"Oh, it's so pretty." She squealed. She had a box of every-flavored beans in her hand and was popping a few in her mouth at random intervals. She held up a red and white bean and examined it thoroughly before handing it to Draco.

"This looks like peppermint. I'm allergic to peppermint." She explained. "Where's my room?"

Draco went up the green and silver door and opened it, revealing a luxurious room decorated in kind. There was a roaring fireplace in the corner, a desk, bookshelf, and a giant king sized bed. In the corner of his room, there where 2 more doors: one to the bathroom, and one to Prue's room.

"You're room is through here." He said

He opened the door and took a few steps inside before running back out.

"Eck! Why is it _lavender_?" he asked, rubbing his eyes.

"Lavender? I _love _Dumbledore! Lavender is my favorite color!" Prudence ran into her room and began examining everything, from the hot pink flowers painted on the walls to the portrait of her hanging above her Queen-sized bed. "Wait until Uncle Sev gets a load of this."

"Uh…I don't think Snape will want to come see your room…"

Prudence just laughed. "I know _that_, silly. But I've got leverage. Stories of his teen years and compromising photos."

Draco looked interested.

"Really? Like what?"

Prue grinned.

"Like, there was this kid James Potter. When they first met, James made fun of Uncle Sev's nose, and so Uncle Sev put a curse on him and gave donkey ears. Anyway, this kid was _furious. _He spent 6 months collecting ingredients and making polyjuice potion, and he put some in Snape's pumpkin juice and…" Prue burst out laughing. "Snape turned into Sandra bullock, with a woman's bits and all! Right when he was about to _kiss _this girl named Rosmerta! But he didn't realize he was a girl, so when he dove in for the kiss, the girl socked him in the nose!"

Prue fished in her pocket and found a photo of Snape with a broken nose, with the body and face of a woman, looking puzzled.

"Rosemerta as in-_the _MadamRosemerta?" asked Draco, eyes wide

"Yep, she owns _The Three Broomsticks_. Don't worry though! He got the girl after all. They're engaged."

"Snape is _engaged_?"

"Oh, yes. I walked in on them yesterday, and he was on one knee with a ring in his palm, and he told her how much he loved her and everything, then he asked her to be his wife and she said yes _right away_. But I had to leave because they started snogging." Prue shuddered in the memory, then brightened up. "Wait until he realized I _saw _him!"


	5. Girl With A Plan

Hermione Granger sat on the head's common room couch, trying desperately to push thoughts of a certain blonde out of her mind long enough to fall asleep. Draco Malfoy. Selfish prat, cruel ferret…abused child. He had seemed so different on the train-like a normal 16 year old boy who just needed to be loved-but then he called her 'Mudblood' again, reminding her that a jerk was a jerk, and that's all he would ever be.

The thing that really bugged her was the fact that she cared-and had cared for some time.

It had been that way since the 5th year when she saw him at the Yule Ball with Pansy Parkinson. No one had guessed, but she had spent the last 30 minutes of the Ball wishing that it was she, not Pansy, that Draco was dancing with. She had hoped and prayed that she would get over him by the time Hogwarts opened again, but it seemed absence really did make the heart grow fonder. The first tears began to roll down her cheeks, and she felt the weight on the couch shift as Prue climbed onto it.

"What's wrong, 'Mione?" asked Prue, tilting her head and gazing into Hermione's eyes.

"Prue? Why are you out of bed? It's way past your bedtime!"

Hermione wiped a few tears away from her eyes and tried to look happy.

Prue snorted.

"Bedtime my butt. Don't try to change the subject."

Hermione smiled at the girl. She was smarter than people gave her credit for.

"I'm just…having trouble with my love life. You're too young to understand." Hermione replied, playing absentmindedly with Prue's bouncy curls

"I'm not too young. You can never be too young to fall in love." whispered Prue, her playful demeanor suddenly gone.

"You sound like you have some experience."

"Well-only with this one boy." Prue admitted, a dreamy look claiming her delicate features.

"Tell me about it." Hermione urged. A good love story was just what she needed to take her mind off Draco.

"Well-before my mum died there was this boy on my block, and I'm telling you: he was real prat, but he was just so gorgeous. My family hated his family and vice versa… so we acted like we hated each other, too. I thought that he really hated me, though, so I was just so confused when I realized I liked him. Do you know what I ended up doing? I went right up to that stupid boy and told him exactly how I felt, and I said I didn't care if he didn't like me back, because I knew I would eventually get over him. It was a giant fib, but he bought it. It turned out he liked me too, and he didn't know what to do because he thought that I hated him. That boy will be waiting for me when this term ends and I go to visit him. We're inseparable now." Prue glanced at the clock. "I have to go now or Draco will be mad I stayed up this late. He's a real mother hen sometimes! See you tomorrow." With those last words, Prue jumped off the couch and tip-toed back to bed, leaving Hermione with her thoughts.

Prue was right, Hermione realized. She'd spend her whole life wondering about what could have happened unless she took a chance. The problem was that it was much easier said than done.

Little did she know, little Prue was now snuggled up in bed with a smug smile on her face. There was no boy waiting for her when she got home, and she had never in her life had to deal with love problems. Prue just had a 6th sense about knowing who liked who, and she knew for a fact that her little story could easily describe the relationship between Hermione and Draco. She also knew that she had made a difference with her "memory", and she might have even convinced Hermione to make a move on her brother, who was too much of a coward to do it himself. Oh yes, there was still work to be done, but she had just made the first major step in her master plan.


	6. 2 AM

Serveus Snape awoke at 2.am to someone knocking on his chamber door. Wiping the sleep from his eyes, he stumbled over to the door, completely oblivious to the fact that he was still in his boxers. Half-asleep, he fumbled with the locks on the door and swung it open to reveal Professor Mcgonagall, who merely rolled her eyes at his attire. She had a mother-son relationship with him, and, having changed his diapers numerous times, was not disturbed by his current lack-of-clothes. Something that did catch her eye on his well-built torso, however, was a tattoo of a snake coiled around a wand. Under the snake where the words: _HBP Slytherin Pride_

"A tattoo, Serveus?" Her voice dripped with surprise and slight disappointment. Serveus did not strike her as the type of man who was fond of tattoos.

"It's 2Am, Minerva, not the time for lectures. Now, was there something you wanted to tell me?"

"No, there was something _she_ wants to tell you."

Professor Mcgonagall stepped aside to reveal a curvy blonde with deep blue eyes. Snape frowned at the nervous look on her face.

"Rosmerta?"

"Serveus. Can I come in?"

He opened the door wider and exchanged a parting nod with Professor Mcgonagall. Once she rounded the corner, he turned back to Rosmerta, who had taken a seat on his bed. He looked at her expectantly for a few moments but when she remained silent he sat near her and grasped her hand comfortingly.

"Whatever it is, you can tell me. I won't be angry." He reassured

She looked deep into his eyes and fought back tears.

"That's the thing: I want you to be happy about this, but you won't be. I just know it."

"You should actually _tell _me what's wrong before you make assumptions like that, shouldn't you?" he teased

She paused and stared at her lap for a few seconds before meeting his eyes again.

"Serveus…the thing I need to tell you is…I'm pregnant."

His jaw dropped, and after a few seconds of staring at her uncomprehendingly, Serveus Snape fainted for the first time in his life.

OOO 

A/N: I apologize for the short chapter


	7. Blonde blurs

**A/N: **_**The song used in this chapter is 'Innocence' by Avril Lavigne. Sorry about that…I just really love this song and thought it went well with this chapter (The beginning, at least)**_

Serveus blinked a few times, trying to get accustomed to the sudden light. He couldn't quite remember what had happened before-except that it was dark, much darker than it was now.

_Waking up I see that everything is ok  
The first time in my life and now it's so great!  
Slowing down I look around and I am so amazed  
I think about the little things that make life great  
I wouldn't change a thing about it  
This is the best feeling_

He could hear voices above him and tried to focus on the making out the faces that went with them, but all he could see where three blond blurs. Rubbing his eyes, he realized the blurs where actually people-Draco, Prue, and…Rosmerta? Rosmerta.  
Suddenly it all came flooding back to him. He was going to have a baby. _A baby_. He half expected himself to be nervous, angry, _something_ _bad_, but a different feeling settled in his heart and refused to go away-bliss. Of course, to keep his reputation intact, he never told anyone, but he had secret weakness for small children. One tear was all it took for him to give them whatever they wanted. And now he was going to have his own little one; his own little girl or boy to spoil rotten. That thought brought a rare, extremely broad grin to his face, and for the first time, the other occupants of the room, who had been absorbed in a conversation in the corner, noticed he was awake.

This innocence is brilliant, I hope that it will stay  
This moment is perfect, please don't go away, I need you now  
And I'll hold on to it, don't you let it pass you by

"Is it a girl or a boy?" he asked suddenly.

"I…didn't check. I mean, I didn't think you'd want to keep it." admitted Rosmerta, surprised by the happy mood he was in.

"_Didn't want to keep it_? What kind of man do you think I am?"

He couldn't believe her. He would _never_ ask her to do anything _half _as upsetting as that.

"I don't know…I was foolish and confused and I wasn't thinking straight." she stumbled over her words guiltily.

"It's ok. I understand." Seeing how distressed she had become, he put a comforting arm around her before continuing. "Do you know how old it is?"

"2 weeks old." She grinned proudly, and a hand drifted to her abdomen. He put his hand over hers, using the other hand to bring her close.

"A baby…" he whispered, and Rosmerta smiled at the unmistakable bliss and fascination in his voice.

Not wanting to intrude on their private moment, Prue took Draco's hand and lead him out of the room.

"Wow, this is so _awesome_! I'm going to have a cousin!" cried Prue

"Awesome? _Amusing _is more like it! Did you see the look on his face? It was like…the way Granger looked when she went to the Yule Ball - _total bliss_."

"And the fact that he's happy is surprising…_why_?"

"Oh, come on. It's Snape. Mean, horrid Potions Teacher who loves to make first years' cry."

Prue rolled her eyes.

"So, why was 'Mione so-as you say it- 'blissful'?"

"Cause' she looked gorgeous." Draco's eyes widened when he realized what he had said. "I mean… _she thought _she looked gorgeous…no one else did…especially _me_…because, you know, why would I think Hermione…I mean _Granger_…looked gorgeous?"

"You like her. And you'd be a fool to not pursue her. " Prue stated simply before walking away.

_This innocence is brilliance, I hope that it will stay  
This moment is perfect, please don't go away, I need you now  
And I'll hold on to it, don't you let it pass you by_

_It's the state of bliss you think you're dreaming  
It's the happiness inside that you're feeling  
It's so beautiful it makes you wanna cry_

_It's so beautiful it makes you want to cry_

Draco put a hand to his head in frustration.

_Damn. That girl is too smart for her own good. _He thought, massaging his eyelids. Would she tell Hermione? Would she blackmail him like, she said she would blackmail Snape?

_This innocence is brilliant, it makes you want to cry  
This innocence is brilliant, please don't go away  
'Cause I need you now  
And I'll hold on to it, don't you let it pass you by  
_

"What am I doing?" he said aloud. "I'm a Malfoy, not Potter. Malfoys' go after their women."

Sighing, he chewed on his bottom lip in indecision before vowing to confess his feelings for Hermione in the morning.

Hidden around the corner, a blonde-haired, blue-eyed 7 year old girl grinned as her plan began to take form.


	8. Dreaming

Draco yawned and swung his legs over the bed, thinking about what his sister had said the day before. _You'd be a fool not to pursue her. _

Draco shook his head. _I'd be a fool _if _I did pursue her. She hates me. _He sighed and buried his head in his hands.

What had happened to the surge of courage that he had experienced the night before? Was he really such a coward? _Why would you care about that mud blood anyway? _His eyes widened in surprise. That wasn't his voice…those weren't his thoughts.

_Damn right they're not. Did you really think you could escape me? _Draco's jaw dropped. He would recognize that voice anywhere-but what was it doing in his _head_?

_All those classes, all that time wasted on Occlumecy, and you can't even _recognize _Legilimency? _The voice taunted.

Draco stumbled from the bed and instintivly reached for his wand.

"Impossible," he told himself, closing his eyes "Legilimency is impossible without eye contact. And my father doesn't even _know _Legilimency"

_So are you hallucinating? Are you going _crazy_? Tsk, Tsk, son, I thought you'd have known by know. I can do __**anything**__, anything I want to, _replied the voice. And then it was gone, as if it had never been there in the first place.

For a second he thought that he _had _been hallucinating, before he heard a sob in the other room. Alarmed, he opened the door to Prue's room and stepped inside. His father stood there, gripping Prue's hand tightly. There were cuts all over her-on her back, her arm, her cheek.

"Daddy's upset." She explained. "Daddy's upset because you love 'Mione. Daddy says it's my fault."

"But-I-No-" his eyes widened as he spoke and he began to feel feint.

"Draco!" Prue suddenly called, outstretching her hand. "Draco! Draco!"

His eyes fluttered open and he realized he was still in his bed. Prue sat on the corner of his bed, shaking him.

"Draco! Draco _wake up_! It's just _a dream_."

He blinked in surprise. A dream? It had all seemed so real-the blood, the voice, his father's cold, gray eyes. He shivered and sat up.

"Err…thanks?"

Prue rolled her eyes and jumped off his bed.

"Do you know how long it took for you to wake up? An _hour._ You're lucky it's Saturday."

He grinned sheepishly.

"Yea. Sorry about that."

He rubbed the sleep from his eyes and examined his surroundings more thoroughly.

"Why are you covered in paint?" he asked, noting the slashes of color all over her pajamas

"I'm trying to re-create a painting." She explained, making her way back to her room. "_Boulevard Of Broken Dreams_. It's famous among non-magic folk."

Draco raised an eyebrow.

"You paint?" he asked incredulously.

"Anyone can paint when they have a wand." She replied.

"No they can't. You still need pretty great magical skill to do that." He countered, following her into her room. "Wow. That's really good."

It was. There, on an easel in Prue's room was a miniature replica of the popular painting.

"You know, there was a café just like this where I used to live." She said, smiling fondly. "My mom used to take me there all the time. It was really fun, to be somewhere where everyone knew your name. Sometimes I was almost glad that my real parents decided to give me up. We did a lot of fun things together, and sometimes my mom taught me about magic."

Draco furrowed his eyebrows.

"How did your mom _know_ about magic?"

Prue rolled her eyes.

"The Ministry of Magic is a group of senile old men. My mom wasn't a muggle; she was a squib." Prue glanced at her watch. "I have to go see Uncle Sev now."

"Why?"

"Do you really think he has the slightest idea on how to take care of a child? The man needs help."

"Your _seven_."  
Prue sighed.

"I used to baby sit little kids, so I know enough to help. See you later."

She gave him a peck on the cheek and began to get dressed.


	9. Trying To Understand

Prue made her way to the staircase and began climbing, pondering how to confront Uncle Sev- it was one thing to trick him or make him laugh, but quite another to give him advice. Of course, he wouldn't want it. Even a man with _half _an ego wouldn't want to take advice from a seven year old. And Prue thought the only thing bigger than the man's bloody ego was his monster of a nose. She wished that she had knew him before, or had stories of his past to go by; all she knew was that he was an ex-death eater with a hell of a temper and an aversion to Gryffindors. She wished she knew what Serveus was like before everything began to go wrong; she wished she knew _what_ had went wrong. But alas, she could wish all she wanted, she could not know these things; they happened before her time. Time. Her eyes widened as something went 'click' in her head. She didn't necessarily need to _turn back time_ to see young Serveus; she could bring young Serveus _to her_! However, as reluctant a she was to admit it, she didn't quite know how to do that…so she needed help.

Chewing on her lip, she veered left and headed to the library. Sure enough, she caught sight of the girl she had been looking for leaned over a copy of _Hogwarts, A History_. Prue scratched the back of her head before tapping Hermione lightly on the shoulder. Hermione glanced up and stared at her blankly for a moment.

"Prue?What's wrong?"

"Ermm…I need help finding this spell."

Hermione visibly perked up.

"Oh?"

"Well, it's this spell to bring someone from the past to now. Only for a day or so. I need it for a very special Project," replied Prue. It wasn't exactly a lie, just vague. If Hermione found out _why _she needed the spell, she wouldn't help her at all and would probably lecture her for hours.

Hermione looked undecided.

"Well, there is _one _spell…"

Prue looked at her pleadingly. Sighing, Hermione took out a paper and wrote something down on it before handing it to Prue.

"This is the _closest _you will get. It summons 2 people for one week."

"Thank you _so _much, Mione'." Prue called as she left.

2 people? Well, it made sense to take people close to Serveus. So Rosmerta was a given

0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0

Directions: Set white candles in pentagon; light. Gather possessions from those you wish to summon, place in pentagon center. State desired age of one of the people you wish to summon, then recite the following three times:

M'amener le deux je cherche, D'un temps un passé long, visiter pour une semaine

That's what the spell read. Now, if only Prue could read it. How the heck did you pronounce cherche? Or M'amener? Hell, to her M'amener sounded dangerously close to Misdemeanor. Prue sighed and rolled her eyes. Leave it to Hermione to expect someone to know how to pronounce words from other languages. She read the paper once again before fumbling in her robes for a wand .

"Pronuncia"

Suddenly, she could hear the words being pronounced in her head. She repeated the spell twice until she remembered how to pronounce each word. Biting her lip, she thought about what she could get from each person. For Snape…she'd visit today to 'Congratulate' him and snag something. For Rosmerta-well, she still hadn't quite thought that one out, but she hoped she would figure something out on her way over.

**A/N: **I know…this chapters pretty bad. I apologize….


	10. Oh, Hello, Hermione

_**A/N: **_I know Hermione seemed kind of dim for giving her the spell, but she wasn't. You'll see why.

Prue made her way back from Serveus room looking pleased with herself. Serveus had gone to the bathroom, and she managed to grab a quill and stuff it in her pocket while talking to Rosmerta. She would return it later; she wasn't a thief. Next, Prue complimented Rosmerta on one of her maroon hairpins, telling her how beautiful the color looked against the shade of her hair. Rosmerta, as planned, insisted that it would look better on Prue, due to her unique shade of platinum blonde hair.

So Prue walked away with Snape's quill, Rosmerta hair pin, and a suspiciously smug grin on her face. Once she got back to her room, she set up a few white candles in a pentagon shape and followed through with the ritual. To her surprise, however, the ritual did not bring her young Severus or Rosmerta. Instead, a small note floated purposely towards her and stopped right in front of her nose. Furrowing her brows, she caught it and opened it to reveal Hermione's handsome handwriting.

**_A project, you said. You led me to believe you would not use the spell. I am most disappointed in you. I had hoped that you would never receive this note; however, you did. And I am well aware of it. At this very moment I am being awoken to an alarm going off ;one that only I can hear, one that is only activated when you touch this note. Let's hope you have a good excuse for misleading me, because I am probably standing right behind you waiting for it._**

**Hermione**

Prue dropped the paper and turned towards the door. Sure enough, Hermione Granger stood in pink polka-dot pajamas and fuzzy bunny slippers. Her hair was messy and it was obvious that she had just woken up. She looked annoyed, to say the least. Prue laughed nervously.

"Oh, hello, Hermione. What brings you here?"

0O0O0O0O0O0O

Hermione frowned and looked around the room, taking in the white candles and the possessions in the middle of the pentagon. She glanced briefly at the note in Prue's hand before placing her hands on her hips.

"_Well_?"

Prue smiled sheepishly.

"Well, you see, it started last night when Rosmerta called us and said Uncle Sev fainted…"


	11. Quill Dealing

Hermione nodded slowly, sitting back in the seat she had summoned.

Prue had just finished explaining everything to her-well, everything except her plans for setting the girl up with her brother-and managed to make her understand why she wanted to use the spell.

"Prue, you didn't…don't have to use that spell. You could have just asked me," Hermione said, shaking her head.

Prue's eyes widened.

"You mean you know what turned him into a greasy bat?" she asked eagerly

Hermione looked up sharply.

"I thought you liked him!" she exclaimed, eyes wide.

Prue rolled her eyes.

"Of course I _like _him, silly. That doesn't change the fact that he's a greasy bat," she stated matter-a-factly.

Hermione smiled. Children did have a way of being frank about these types of things.

"People used to pick on him when he was younger. I guess that being feared brings him a sense of power that he never had before. He thinks that the stricter he is, the more kids want to avoid him and the less he gets hurt. He only accepts help from people he trusts. " She explained.

Prue blinked, thinking.

"Thank you. That might just work."

Hermione's eyes furrowed.

"What might work?"  
Prue smiled.

"Nothing," she got up and opened the door. "You can get back to sleep now, Mione'."

Hermione's eyes narrowed as she left.

"Prue, what are you up to?"  
Prue just smiled sweetly and bade her goodnight. This made Hermione all the more suspicious. That smile was dangerous.

**O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0O0   
**"I need a quill that imitates someone's handwriting. I can give my friend advice through a letter, and he won't protest because he won't know it's me. He'll think it's from someone else…someone he trusts. Someone who he knows he could be himself around." Prue bit her nails as she thought, eyes narrowed in concentration. _Professor Mcgonagall _ Prue added to herself

Fred and George exchanged glances.

"Tell me," Fred began

"Why we should help you," continued George

"Seeing that your Draco Malfoy's sister." Finished Fred, crossing his arms across his chest

Uh-Oh. She should have seen this coming. Clearing her throat, she fixed her features into the famous Malfoy smirk.

"Because, boys, whether you like to admit it or not, you like me. Besides, you wouldn't want items from your stock disappearing mysteriously." she said calmly.

The side of Fred's lip twitched slightly, and she could tell he was holding back an amused smile. George reached in his suitcase-which appeared to be empty-and murmured a spell. The illusion immediately faltered, and Prue could now tell that it was actually filled with banned products. He searched through his Quills and handed her a lavender one.

"You're favorite color, I hear."

Prue smiled and handed them 5 galleons.

"Thank you. I'll be sure to use your services again."

She shook both of their hands before heading to the door. As she wrapped her hands around the doorknob, she sighed. For some reason this transaction reminded her of drug dealing.


	12. Dear Severus,

_**A/N: SQUEE I can't believe I got 51 reviews! I'm not even such a good writer and my chapters aren't really as long as they should be. I love you guys. (runs of and begins crying with joy)**_

Prue made her way back to her room, fingering the quill in her hand. A small frown graced her features as she remembered a moment in her past.

_3-year-old Prue was stacking lavender blocks on top of each other, not really paying attention to what she was making. Something strange was going on with her mommy…she was talking to another wrinkly woman with short brown hair and blue eyes. The woman wore a very old fashion dress and clear stockings. _

"_Dolores," her mother said tensely. "You are not taking my child."_

"_She belongs to the Malfoys," replied the other woman. "You don't have a choice."_

"_The _Malfoys _left her in a garbage can! Get out of my sight!" _

_With that, her mother slammed the door in the woman's face. _

Prue blinked. She couldn't remember much more about it. Looking up, she realized she had arrived at the entrance to the house common room.

"_Penitus - Domus Prosapia__" _she mumbled bitterly, and the painting swung open. Sometimes she _did _wonder about why her biological parents didn't want her. They had kept Draco, why not her? Biting her lip, she fingered one of her curly locks. They where the same color as Draco's, but in all the different magazines and newspapers featuring her family she had never seen another Malfoy with curls. Maybe that was it. Maybe she wasn't 'Malfoy' enough for them. Maybe, just maybe, they took one look at her curly hair and soft, small nose and said ' What a disgrace. We can't have a Malfoy looking like _that_.'

The thought brought tears to her eyes. Wiping them away, she tried to focus on the task at hand. Because that's what she did. That's what she had always done. If she could busy herself helping others, she wouldn't have to confront her own feelings, her own insecurities. She could run from her past and not feel like that was what she was doing. She could be selfish…without _appearing _selfish at all.

Sighing, she sat down on the common room couch and got out a piece of black paper. What would Professor Mcgonagall sound like in a letter? Strict, Blunt, Old, Wise. But in a letter to _Severus_, a fellow adult, the man she practically raised? Warm, Sincere…slightly worried, perhaps? A combination of all of the above? Twirling the pen in her hand, Prue managed a small smile before she began writing.

_Dear Severus,_

_I understand, more than you may think, what you are going through right now. You are worried that when your child reaches his/her teen years he/she may no longer listen to you. You may fear that after hearing rumors of your death-eater years he/she may think it 'normal' to rebel in very extreme ways. You might even fear that he/she would call you a hypocrite' should you try to lead him/her to good. I am writing to tell you not to worry. All you must do, when that time comes, is show him/her the ways that your years as a death eater have affected your life for the worse. Should you need more advice, leave the letter in the 5555__th__ page of the 9000 page potion's book in the library, 2__nd__ row. I fear that students have not troubled the book in some while. Yes, even Ms. Granger. _

_Minerva Mcgonagall _

Prue smiled as she sealed the letter. She had seen the book in her library before. It was large and all but caked in dust. She had searched through it for a while to find that it was incredibly boring. Something that Severus would write, perhaps.


	13. I Guess This Is Goodbye

Prue left the note in front of Severus' door and made her way back to her room. On her way, she saw two boys talking. One had messy black hair and green eyes, and the other had blue eyes and red hair. She recognized them as Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley.

"I heard another kid has to come to hogwarts. His parents got killed by deatheaters." said Ron

Harry shrugged.

"How old is he?"

"Just turned 8 last week. He's Emeralda Simpsons' brother."

"Emeralda from Slytherin?"

"Yep. Sucks, right? If we're going to have brats running around they might as well be Gryffindor brats."

Harry just sighed.

"Well, Malfoy's sister isn't too bad-"

"Are you bonkers?!" asked Ron, stopping in his tracks. " She isn't bad now but give her a few years. Trust me, she'll be just like her ferret brother."

Prue glared and took a deep breath, calming herself and fixing her face into a cool mask. She walked up, right next to Ron. He stared down at her.

_"I_ think ferrets are cute. Especially snow-white ones." she said matter-a-factly "Are you implying that my brother is cute? Wouldn't that be a little...gender confused?"

Grinning, she walked away before he could reply, remembering to ask her brother about the boy they were talking about. Knowledge was power, after all.

**§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§**

Emeralda's brother arrived the next morning and took a seat with his sister, directly across from Draco and Prue. He had short, messy black hair, blue eyes and nerdy square glasses that were too big for his face. When he saw Prue he smiled and extended a hand.

"Hi, I'm Julian Simpson." he said.

Prue smiled and shook his hand.

"Prue Malfoy."

"I knew that," he replied. "My sister told me all about you."

Prue raised her eyebrows.

"Did she now? I've heard some interesting things about you too."

She watched, amused, as he gulped nervously and adjusted his glasses, eyes wide.

"What kinds of things? Anything-um-bad?"

"Oh, just the normal, 'the new kid's a half-vampire' stuff." she said casually "Why isn't your sister one?"

He eyed her suspiciously and adjusted his glasses again before speaking.

"We have different fathers. My father-the vampire-didn't want me. Half vampires aren't

like real one's. I can live without blood, but sometimes I crave it, like you might crave chocolate. Real vampires _have_ to have human blood. .I guess I wasn't good enough for him. "

Prue offered him a sad smile.

"I can relate."

He returned the smile-the beginning of a brilliant friendship.

**§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§**

Draco turned to find his sister conversing with the new kid. After wondering briefly if she had any questionable motives,he reached for a chocolate muffin and bit in, feeling nervous. This was the day that he would ask Hermione out, and nothing would stop him. Not Pansy with her annoying obsession with him, not Crabbe and Goyle with their idiotic rambling -not the shameful fear

of rejection that he skillfully shoved into the dark corners of his mind. Nothing. His eyes wandered over to her and he was disgusted to find the Weasel's hands pulling on her shoulders for some reason. Rons' lips puckered and he realized, with a sneer, that the boy was trying to kiss her. The muffin dropped from his hand to his plate and he watched intently. So intently, in fact, that if everyone in the great hall was not looking at Hermione and Ron, they would have surely seen the obvious jealousy in the Malfoy's stormy grey eyes. Hermione shoved Ron away and Draco let out a breath he hadn't known he was holding. A slight smirk graced his features as Hermione stood up, shoving her plate aside.

"_How dare you!_"

Her voice was dangerously quiet but everyone heard anyway.

"Mione," began Ron, standing up as well. "I broke up with Lavender. Isn't that what you wanted?

We can be together now."

Ron grabbed Hermione's hand but she snatched it away.

" Did you actually think that I was _waiting for you? _We are _friends _ and I never want that to change!"

Rons' face was becoming as red as his hair.

"You fancy me, and it's obvious, so don't try to hide it."

Hermione rolled his eyes.

"No Ron, I fanc_ied _you. In _1st year_, when I was eleven. By the beginning of 2nd year I couldn't even _think _about being more than friends."

"Well," said Ron through clenched teeth, "Think about it now because I _wont _just be your friend."

Hermione blinked at him.

'"Dating or nothing, is that it?"

"Yes, it is, so make your choice."

His blue eyes where burning with embarrassment and anger.

Hermione crossed her arms across her chest.

"Well then, Ronald, I guess this is goodbye."

With that she left the hall, leaving Ron gaping after her.

_**A/N: I''m sorry for not updating for so long. I hope you can forgive me! I can't decide something and I figured I'd ask your advice so...**_

_**Should Julian help Prue with**_

_**The 'baggage' that she has from being rejected by her parents**_

_**Helping Snape with his baby**_

_**Setting up Draco/Hermione**_

_**or**_

_**Nothing at all. Get him out of the story.**_


	14. Stage One

Julian looked up and watched as Hermione stormed out of the hall. He fixed his glasses again and whistled.

"Wow, I really thought she was going to slap him," he said to Prue. "That's Hermione Granger, isn't it? She's famous, you know. Wiz-kid of hogwarts."

Prue sighed.

"I know. She's _perfect _for my brother, but he's such a stupid prat sometimes. I mean honestly, so she isn't a pureblood. _So what_? She's smarter than most purebloods anyway. I mean, look at Pansy Parkinson."

Julian grinned.

"My sister shared a dorm with her. She'd wake up in the middle of the night to Pansy squealing her head off about new beauty products in _Witch Weekly._"

Prue rolled her eyes.

"Any idiot would know you don't need beauty products if you're a witch! Go to the library; there are dozens of fabulous spells in there. You know, maybe I should show Hermione the de-frizzer spell for her hair..."

"Don't bother. She'd have seen it by now. Besides, her hair is her personal signature. If she makes it all...normal...she'd look just like Lavender Brown or the next girl." Julian picked at his food. "You know, your brother just left the hall. My sister told me all about the layout of Hogwarts, and if I add that knowledge to what I learned in _Hogwarts, A History_, I think I know the school pretty well."

Prue raised an eyebrow.

"Is there a point coming in the near future?"

Julian grinned, his eyes twinkling.

"If he were going to Quidditch, The Library or his dorm he would have went through the other door. _However,_ if he was going after Hermione..."

Prue's eyes widened. Grinning, she pulled Julian towards her and kissed him on the forehead.

"You're a _genius_! C'mon, we have to follow them and spy!" Prue jumped up and raced towards the door. Julian blinked and stared blankly ahead of him, his face flushed.

"Wow." he whispered before following her.

**§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§**

They found Draco and Hermione by the staircases. Prue quickly pulled Julian behind a suit of armor, who turned his head all the way around.

"Its rude to spy, you know." It said in a snotty voice.

Julian pulled one of his socks off and stuffed it into the 'mouth'' part of the armor. As it struggled to spit it out they listened on to the older teens' conversation.

"So...Hermione." Draco gulped and stared it his shoes, his hair falling into his face. "You know, we get to go to Hogsmade on Valentines Day and I was just wondering ...Do you want to go with me?"

Hermione blinked at him.

"Sure, that would be nice."

With that she boarded the stairs, which had just began to move. Prue and Julian grinned at each other.

"Now all we have to do," Julian said, "is make sure their date goes _perfectly_. Do you have any connections in Hogsmade?"

"I'm not sure if she'd help me," said Prue quietly. "but Rosmerta is pretty nice, and she knows me, too."

"Find a way to contact her and I'll make a list of what we need."


	15. Peridot Pendants

Hermione and Draco walked hand-in-hand as they headed towards Hogsmade. With a dreamy sigh, Hermione glanced up at Draco to see him glaring at a Hufflepuff girl. He grinned boyishly when the girl hurriedly ducked into a shop, eager to escape him. He looked adorable. But _still_.

"Honestly, Malfoy, do you ever let up?" she asked, trying her best to sound exasperated.

He pretended to look shocked.

"I didn't even _do _anything! Honestly, you Gryffindors are delusional."

"Oh yes, you didn't _do _anything. Except look at that poor girl like you where about to rip her to shreds." Hermione said, rolling her eyes.

Draco smirked.

"I thought sarcasm was a Slytherin thing. Perhaps you where sorted in the wrong house."

"Of course I wasn't! I look horrible in green, Drakie-Poo!"

They both burst out laughing at her obvious imitation of Pansy Parkinson.

"C'mon, lets go get butterbeers." He said when he caught his breath

He pulled her into The Three Broomsticks. As soon as Rosmerta saw them she led them to a very private table in the corner. She didn't even take their orders before placing two butterbeers on the table and disappearing somewhere behind the counter.

"You know, Draco, I smell something, don't you?" Hermione said as she sipped her drink.

"Ah, yes. This entire thing just _reeks _of Prue. I wonder what else she's got up her sleeve."

His question was answered when Rosmerta came back carrying two plates full of food.

There was shrimp, both breaded and normal, crab legs, steak, lobster meat, sausages and garlic bread. With a small flick of the wand, 3 candles appeared in the middle of the table. The lights around them where slightly dimmed and Hermione couldn't help blushing as she realized how romantic it all was. They talked as they ate, about everything from the weather to Ron's outburst earlier that week.

"Is the prat _still _not talking to you?"

"He is. He came later that day and apologized for everything. Said he didn't actually feel that way about me, but he wanted to make Lavender jealous."

Draco looked thoughtful for a few seconds before shrugging.

"Speaking of romance; Professor Snape is getting married." Draco said, picking a shrimp off of his plate and popping it in his mouth.

Hermione almost choked on her sausage.

"What?! To who?"

Draco grinned goofily.

"Rosmerta. And she's pregnant."

Hermione tried to imagine what Snape's kid would look like. Crooked nose, greasy hair, 2 feet tall. She shivered.

"I think that-look at the time! We have to go."

They both stood up, but as she turned to leave Draco caught her arm.

"Wait-I uh-have something for you. It's nothing special, just-"

Taking a deep breath, he pulled a box out of his pocket and removed the shrinking charm on it. Blushing furiously, Hermione opened it to reveal a beautiful pendant. It was gold, with a large peridot stone surrounded by slightly smaller blue topaz stones.

"It's beautiful," she whispered, suddenly teary-eyed. No one had ever given something so beautiful to her-not to mention expensive. Pleased with her response, he helped her put it on.

"It looks more beautiful _on_ you," he declared when he saw it on her.

Laughing with joy, she stood on her tiptoes and kissed him, softly at first, but quickly growing more intense as their tongues met. His kiss made her forget everything, everything but the wonderful boy who had wrapped his arms around her, and she forgot even herself, lost in the sensations until-

"Hermione! What are you _doing_?!"

Draco and Hermione quickly broke apart and turned to face a very angry Harry Potter.


	16. Very Forgiving

"I can't believe this!" fumed Harry. "You denied Ron to date _him_? Wait until Ron hears about this! Merlin, Hermione! Do you have any self-respect?! Letting Malfoy use you like a-"

"Harry," Hermione interrupted, "You can go tell him, but it won't make any difference to me. You've known me all my life. Do I make decisions without thinking very carefully first? _No, I don't_. You have to understand that you don't own me. I'm not a small child that you have to constantly make decisions for. If this is a mistake, let me make it. I'm not going to commit suicide if a relationship doesn't work out! I don't want to lose you as my friend, but I know myself, and I know that I'll forever be wondering 'what if' if I don't see this through. I'm not asking for your approval, but _please _try to be civil."

Harry seemed to calm down, but only slightly. He glanced at Draco, who was glaring daggers at him.

"I'll be civil if he is, but I can't keep something this big from Ron. I'll enjoy seeing Ron give him a black eye. And chopping off a few body parts." Harry responded, a spark of anger still evident in his green eyes, this time mingled with acceptance and confusion.

Hermione looked relieved.

"I'll deal with Ron. Thank you, Harry. I really expected you to be angrier."

"Oh, I _am_. You'll have to deal with me later, but now, you'll need all of your energy to convince Ron."

§§§§§§§§§§§§§§§

Harry was right. Ron came banging on the Heads' portrait early that morning. Draco was out doing rounds and Snape was taking care of Prue (much to his horror), so she was alone.

Readying her wand, Hermione opened the door. As soon as the redhead saw her he let out a string of insults, the least hurtful being 'Malfoy's stupid little whore'. When he was done yelling he forced his way into the room and began throwing things around. In the end, Hermione had to tie Ron to a chair and gag him so that he would listen to her. She gave him the same speech she gave Harry, but when she took the gag out of his mouth he began screaming at her again. Just as she was stuffing it back in, Draco walked in.

"Well," he said, raising his eyebrows. "I do hope this little meeting isn't as kinky as it looks."

"He won't listen to me!" breathed an exasperated Hermione.

Draco smirked.

"Of course he won't. Which is why I got this." Draco took an envelope out of his pocket and tossed it to Hermione, who opened it immediately, eager for help. When she examined the contents of the envelope, a small smile graced her features. 

"Ron, what's the main reason that you're angry?" she asked, pulling the gag back out of his mouth.

"I _love _you, Hermione! And you went out and chose that scum over me!" Ron cried

"Do you love me enough to pass up a chance with _her_?" Hermione asked, holding a picture up. Ron was breath taken. The girl smiling in the photo was gorgeous. When she waved at him and blew him a kiss, he almost fainted. "Draco's distant cousin. Half-Veela. _Very _interested in you. In fact, she wrote '_I would love to be with this fiery redhead you speak so fondly of. Be sure to tell me if he is interested!' _"

Ron took a deep breath, staring at the photo.

"Tell her I'm defiantly interested. I've decided to forgive you Hermione, because I am a forgiving person. Be sure to mention that in the letter, ok?"

Hermione pursed her lips in amusement.

"Of course, Ron. Very forgiving."


	17. Mon Amour

_One month later in _**_Amour Forest_**

The view was stunning. Of course, most of the girls were too worried about getting dirt on their beautiful dresses or missing an important part of the wedding to fully appreciate the golden light of the sunset seeping through the leaves of the tall trees, painting streaks of light on the leaf-covered forest floor. The boys-well, they wouldn't recognize the beauty of this French forest if there were several neon arrows pointing at the most breathtaking parts of the landscape: the tall, thin waterfall, it's water pouring into a small pool (a silencing charm was put on it, of course, so that the guests could hear the priest.), and a large flower arch under which the bride and groom stood: Severus and Madame Rosmerta.

Rosmerta's pregnancy was now more pronounced-a small, yet noticeable bump graced her mid-section and she was glowing.

After what seemed like hours, the priest finished the vows and Severus slipped the ring onto Rosmerta's finger - an extremely large heart-cut diamond with Aquamarines embedded on the band. _('I do's were not necessary in magical weddings-the ceremony would not work if the participants were unwilling)_

Once the ring was on her finger, a faint, smoky white substance was pulled out of both Severus and Rosmerta. Both looked rather weak for a few moments before the foggy smoke was sucked into the opposite body- Severus' into Rosmerta's and vice-versa.

Their souls where now permanently merged.

**00000000000000000000000000**

Prue sniffed and took another bite of cake.

"I can't believe my cousin is going out with that jerk"

"You really hate that Weasley kid, don't you?" Julian asked, eyes twinkling in a very Dumbledore sort of way as he watched Prue stab her cake.

"I don't _hate _anyone. I just really, really, _really_ don't like him."

Julian smiled.

"Of _course_."

In truth, Julian didn't like Prue's cousin very much. He had always admired tough, intelligent girls-like Prue or Hermione- but Desirea was the exact opposite of this. She allowed men to be completely possessive of her and though she could name all the themes of 'Witch Weekly' on a moments notice, she probably didn't even _know _what polyjuice potion was.

Personally, Julian thought she was perfect for the Weasley boy.

**00000000000000000000000000**

Ron grinned and adjusted his robes. Desirea was talking about something but he wasn't really paying attention.

"And I told her, why shouldn't I meet him? He's a redhead for god's sake! Besides, I think we really made a connection in our letters." Desirea waved an arm dramatically.

Ron nodded dumbly and continued to stare at her, dangerously close to drooling.

**00000000000000000000000000**

"Where did Draco and Hermione go off to?" Prue furrowed her eyebrows and looked around.

"Somewhere between the trees. To snog, no doubt." Julian grinned and brushed a leaf off of Prue's hair.

Prue shook her head.  
"They can't keep their hands off of each other! I wonder when he'll ask her."

"Ask her what?"

"To marry him, of course." Prue said matter-a-factly. "It's kind of obvious what he's planning. I'm pretty sure Hermione knows, too."

"Isn't it a little to early for marriage?" Julian had no idea how Prue figured these things out.

"Don't be dim. He'll ask her within a month. You'll see."

**A/N: I think that they'll only be one or two more chapters left. **


	18. Revelations

**A/N: You will hate me for this chapter. No, **_**really**_** hate me. It messes up the whole story and well… you'll see. If you think it's really horrible, tell me, and I'll re-do it and change this part of the plot.**

One week later: 

Draco Malfoy finished his food and pushed his plate aside, eager to get away from Pansy Parkinson, who had been trying to flirt with him for the last half hour. Before he could leave the Great Hall, however, Professor Mcgonagall stopped him.

"Mr. Malfoy. Please report to the Headmasters office immediately. Bring your sister."

SSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS

"What do you think they want with us?" Prue asked. "Does this have any think to do with me installing a Micro-Wiza-Cam on your robes?"

Draco shrugged. "I don't kn…wait! You did _what_?!"

Prue smiled up at him innocently. "Maybe we should just go in and find out what they want. _Jelly Apples" _

The statue swerved open to reveal three very tired, worried looking people: Severus Snape, Minerva Mcgonagall and Albus Dumbledore.

Draco took a deep breath and sat in one of the comfy chairs in front of Dumbledore's desk. Prue followed suite.

Dumbledore waited until they were settled to begin speaking.

"I'm afraid, Mr. Malfoy, that your life is about to be become even more complicated. Your parents – your _true_ parents – are not the people that raised you. In fact, you never met them. Aurors have just discovered one of Voldemort's many . They were able to get past the Death Eaters and found a dungeon, of sorts. There, we found your true parents- the real Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy. Your true parents _were _death eaters, but like Severus, they soon realized that being a Death Eater was not what they expected. They wanted out. However, they did not trust me enough to confide in me. They tried to get away without assistance. Voldemort soon realized that they were not loyal to him. He did not kill them, however. No, he had a use for them. You see, your mother was pregnant with you at the time. Voldemort wanted a baby to raise as the perfect death-eater. Perfectly loyal, that is. He locked your father and mother up and took the baby when it was born. Next, he gave it to two of his trusted death-eaters to raise. They used a more advanced version of Polyjuice potion- one that can last for months-to imitate your parents. Since Lucius and Narcissa were in the same cell, another child was conceived years later. When the baby was born a girl, Voldemort dubbed it useless and left in a garbage can to die. I know that _this _story is true because the death-eater imitations of your parents just ran out of polyjuice potion and your true parents were under the influence of veritaserum when we questioned them. "

Prue took a deep, shaky breath.

"So my parents didn't hate me?"

Dumbledore shook his head.

"Not at all. In fact, they love you dearly and would very much like to meet you and your brother."

………………………………………………………………………………………………………

**A/N: BTW, this is not the entire chapter. I'll post the rest tomorrow. **


	19. Curling Irons

"I feel sick." Prue stopped searching through her closet and took a seat on the bed.

Draco rolled his eyes. "You're only nervous. _Relax_." He pulled a mint green dress out of the closet and offered it to her. "What about this one? It's green. They'll like it."

The dress was simple and pretty, with short puffed sleeves and the letters 'P.M' in silver on the left breast. It would end just past her knees.

Prue nodded when she saw it.

"They'll like it, but what if they don't like _me_?"

"Why wouldn't they like you?"

Draco asked, buttoning up his dark green dress shirt.

Prue pointed to her curls.

Draco snorted.

"And here I thought you were smart."

**00000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000**

Half an hour later, they stood in front of the Malfoy Manor.

"I'll come back to pick you up later." Snape said, getting ready to apparate. He had escorted them out of Hogwart's grounds and apparated them to the manor, but he didn't want to go inside.

He had believed that his best friends had just become distant after Draco was born and that the pressures of being a Death Eater had changed them. He didn't realize that they were completely different people. He was supposed to have _noticed…_he was supposed to _know them_.

He had let them down.

Which was why he couldn't bear to meet them again. Not _now_.

But Prue had a different idea on how things should work. When he tried to apparate, she grabbed his leg and glared up at him.

"Oh no, Mister. If I have to go, you have to go."

Severus glared back at her, but could see past her anger. He had figured her out a long time ago. Prue was a perfectionist. She felt that her parents rejected her, so she learned as much as she could and tried to be as perfect and likable as possible. She helped people with their personal problems. She was friendly and funny. She was intelligent for her age.

But under it all, she was just a frightened little girl, afraid that someone would tire of her and toss her into another garbage bin. Her life's goal was to be accepted and loved, but she too paranoid to realize that she already was. Her problem was that she couldn't accept herself. Her only hope was to walk through the doors of that manor and find that she was never rejected in the first place. If it meant _he_ had to go face them too, so be it.

"Fine. I'll stay." Snape agreed reluctantly. "Now release my leg."

Prue smiled gratefully up at him as Draco knocked on the front door of the Manor.

**0000000000000000000000000000**

Lucuis was the one who opened the door. He was still unreadable, though a tiny bit of his shock could be found in his eyes when he saw how big both of his children had become. He offered a brief nod and a small smile to Severus before leading them all into the living room where Narcissa awaited them.

Her reaction was the exact opposite of Lucuis'. As soon as she saw her children she rushed to embrace them, wetting their clothes with tears of joy.

"Oh, you've gotten so big! Draco, you look _exactly _like your father when he was your age. Granted, he had longer hair but… and _Prue_." Narcissa leaned down to get a closer look at her daughter. After a few moments of silence, Narcissa reached down and pulled one of Prue's curls, watching as it bounced back up.

"You know," Narcissa began, "When I was a young girl I tried _desperately _to get curls like these. I used all of the spells and potions I could find. One of the spells recommended by Bellatrix turned my hair blue for a week! I even resorted to a _muggle curling iron _once at my Bella's Aunt's Cousin's house. It nearly burned my hair off…not a pleasant experience. I always thought curls were gorgeous, but I must say, these have to be the prettiest curls I've ever seen."

Prue released a breath she hadn't known she'd been holding.

"You really like them?"

Narcissa laughed.

"I love them! I might even be a little jealous of you. So, " she continued, straightening. "Do any of you have any candidates for marriage that I should be aware of?"

Severus and Lucuis exchanged amused glances behind her back. 'Marriage' had always been Narcissa's favorite word. When Lucuis was twelve and admitted that he had a crush on her, the first thing she asked was "When are we to be married?". In her late teens, Narcissa would point to random people, some who never acknowledged each other, and be able to tell who would marry whom. Perhaps that was where Prue got her match-making skills from.

Draco took a deep breath and gathered his courage. Should he tell his mother that he planned on proposing to Hermione? 

_Of course I should, _he decided _She'd be hurt if she finds out after the fact._

"I have one candidate." He said, sounding braver than he felt.

Narcissa's eyes widened.

"What is she like?"

Draco could see his father stand up a little straighter. Lucuis couldn't hide his curiosity- and excitement- this time.

"Well, her name is Hermione Granger and she's the brightest in our year. She's obsessed with books and…she's muggle born and in Gryffindor."

"Gryffindor?" Lucuis had turned a very odd shade of green.

"Well, I personally think that the Sorting hat is eccentric." Draco continued, "She _should_ have been in Ravenclaw. Her love of books is greater than her bravery. So…you don't mind that she's Muggle-born?"

Narcissa shook her head.

"We lost our scorn for muggles when we realized what disgusting people purebloods can be. We're not too fond of Gryffindors though…but if you love her, we support you."

Lucuis furrowed his eyebrows.

"We do?"

Narcissa glared at him.

"Yes, Lucuis. _We do_."


	20. Tea With Narcissa

**A/N: **No, I abandon you guys. :p I'm just lazy..

It was almost time to go, and as the time ticked away, Narcissa was becoming more and more depressed.

"I wish you children could stay with us," she sighed.

"I can!" Prue volunteered. "I don't even _go _to Hogwarts. I was stuck with _this_ one because everyone thought you were locked up. No offense, but he's kind of annoying."

Draco rolled his eyes.

"Gee, thanks."

"You're welcome." Prue responded quickly, unshaken. "So, can I stay?"

"If your brother agrees..." Narcissa glanced hopefully at her son.

"There's only two weeks left of school anyway. I think I'll survive without her for that long."

"One could hope..." Prue muttered under her breath.

Narcissa snickered.

"She's just like her mother. You can tell- Lucius' feeble attempts at sarcasm always sound pathetic."

She glanced over at her husband to see if he had heard – he was completely clueless, chatting animately with Severus.

* * *

"So Severus, I see you haven't given up on the muggle goth look." Lucius teased.

Severus groaned.

"For the last time, I am not _goth. _I am not _emo_. I am not _punk_. Merlin, why did Naricssa have to tell you about labels?"

Lucius just smirked.

"Be careful," Severus warned, "You're the poster-boy for prep."

Lucius blinked.

"_Prep? _I'm _not _snotty."

Severus snorted. He opened his mouth to respond, but quickly closed it when he saw Draco approaching them. The boy glanced nervously at his father before talking.

"Where am I supposed to get the ring?" he asked finally.

"What ring?" Lucius asked, confused.

"_The _ring. For Hermione."

"Merlin, son. How can you bring something like that up so suddenly?" Lucius asked, shocked.

Draco shrugged, embarrassed. Lucius sighed.

"You don't buy an engagement ring. There's a family ring. Once you can get it off your mother, you can propose to this Hermione girl."

Draco's eyes widened, and he glanced over to his mother. She was still wearing the Malfoy engagement ring.

"Unless you plan on chopping off your mother's hand, you'll stay a bachelor forever." Severus commented.

"Father, do you think you can..."

"Don't look at me." Lucius interrupted. "I got it off of my mother. It's about time I get to see someone else suffer."

* * *

"I told you, son. I'm not giving up _my _ring until I get a chance to meet this girl." Narcissa crossed her ams and stared at him stubbornly.

Draco glanced at Prue, hoping she would step in and help like she always did. The girl just shook her head. This was his battle.

"Mother, she has extremely bad memories of both you _and_ father. I don't think meeting her would be a good idea."

"Well, she has to re-learn who we are sometime, doesn't she? She can't marry you and hate us. If I'm giving up my ring, I want to _like_ the girl who's getting it."

Draco sighed.

"Fine. I'll do it."

Narcissa smiled.

"Wonderful! I'm free for tea tomorrow. You can drop Prue off to stay with us then, too."

At this, Severus stood up.

"I'm afraid I have to go now. I have some papers to grade."

They said there good-byes, Narcissa hugging everyone until their bones ached and Lucius hugging only his little girl, offering only friendly handshake to Severus – which suited the man just fine – and a pat on the back to his son.

As he stepped into the floo, Draco felt Prue tug on his arm.

"What?" he asked

Prue smirked.

"They're kissing."

Draco glanced back at his parents and smiled.

* * *

"I can't believe you only gave me one day's warning!" Hermione complained. "I don't have any casual dresses – I only have one dress, and that was from the yule ball."

Draco shrugged.

"Wear that."

Hermione pursed her lips.

"Don't be silly. That's far too dressy for a casual tea."

Draco laughed.

"For a normal casual tea? Yes. For one with a Malfoy, it's going under-dressed."

Hermione blinked at him.

"Is Prue the only sane person in your family?"

"Yes!!" came the call from outside of the door.

Draco rolled his eyes.

"Prue, stop eavesdropping!"

* * *

When they arrived the next morning, it was clear Narcissa had already begun redecorating. Outside, the manor was almost completely covered in beautiful flowers. A gorgeous fountain had been installed, and when they finally went inside, they caught giving the house elf instructions on what color to paint the walls.

"Mint green," she demanded, "No, not like you! _You_ are emerald green, I want _mint_. Let me show you what it looks li – oh, you're here!"

Hermione smiled shakily and resisted the urge to go off in a lecture on house elf's rights. She squirmed slightly as Narcissa inspected her.

"She's beautiful," Narcissa said finally.

Hermione blushed. What was it with Malfoy's finding her so attractive? She was plain- and always had been. What did they see that she didn't?

"Come along now," Narcissa instructed, "the tea room is this way."


End file.
